Raven Roth sipped her tea methodically, because that was what was required of her. She must keep up her strength, to do the job she had chosen to do. She was not particular to food, and since nobody was going to force her, she stuck with herbal tea. If it was really her choice, she would not ingest anything at all. But it wasn't, was it? Her body must stay elite if she wished to fight evil, and she did wish.
Raven Roth had joined the Teen Titans years ago, when the knowledge that she would destroy the world one day came to much for her conscience to bare. She alone decided that if she must bring upon chaos, until that day, she would stop it. It had to be done. It was what she required. Her whole life, she knew she was going to die for her father, and that knowledge often became too much to handle, so she meditated. Because, with her terrible burden, also cam a terrible gift. She could move things with her mind. She could grab things with her mind. She could KILL things with her mind. The only thing proving that it was her was a black aura that came in the form of her superpower. Then, it happened. The day that Trigon came. The day the world was destroyed. Her team, however, defeated her cruel father, and brought Raven back, because she had saved them. Raven, did not die.
Sometimes, she wished she had. Raven had never learned to come to terms with the power she possessed, and it was forever a struggle just to keep her mind from exploding. She did it though, but with each passing day she felt she was losing herself into a place she knew she would never survive. But for now there was life. There was Beastboy and Cyborg playing video games, and Robin blasting out his music, and Starfire, brewing up some concoction. She lived for these people, and no matter how dead she felt at times, she loved them all more than any other thing in the world. They were why she stayed here.
Raven Roth hurt herself. She hated it, but she knew that she couldn't go on without doing it. Self mutilation had been the answer since she had been a mere girl of twelve. It meant release. Sweet release. Release from having to watch Robin and Starfire being happy together. Release from seeing innocent citizens dying every day. Release from being trapped in herself, with no other way to express her anger, and no other way to drive away lost demons of a black childhood. Release from knowing she would be alone the rest of her life. Sweet release.
However, Raven's body was against her in the whole ordeal. If she took the blade upon herself, while it was dragging through her skin, the cut would heal up right behind it. It was only if she pushed hard enough to cut through to bone, that it would bleed for more than a few seconds, and throb for an a little less that an hour. Yet, she still managed to sport a few scars. One from a week ago, and another from last night. Every time they would start to fade, she cut them open again, and again, and again, until she was sure that maybe this scar would not fade, that maybe it would stay her secret friend for the rest of her days.
She dragged her fingers along her hidden cuts, and picked up her morbid love tale and went back to reading. Beastboy and Cyborg were playing 'Hidden Monkey, Crouching Zombie' or some other waste of money. Her head buzzed from the constant beeping. She loved them, but it was time to shut up.
"Beastboy, kindly shut off that poor excuse for entertainment, so some of us can keep our brain cells in tact!" She shouted, yet amazingly kept her monotone voice level.
"Jesus! OK!" said Beastboy, grabbing the remote and turning down the sound two notches.
Raven used her mind powers to grab the remote and shot of the TVs power, while at the same time giving Beastboy a wedgie. He howled in pain, and she dropped him to the floor and walked out of the room, smiling. This is how life was, and for this moment, that was all she needed.
